A complaint against an ad for SpecSavers in Australia, which features a volleyball player mistaking a seagull for the ball due to bad eyesight, argued it suggested “cruelty to animals is alright”.
“Selling a health product with such a violent and abusive manner is disturbing,” the complainant said.
“I have seen this ad on other channels and I do not think it is suitable for either children or adults as it is a grotesque manipulation of the thought process.”
SpecSavers #SHGTS: defended the spot, arguing the volleyball player had “not been portrayed as being violent against the seagull but rather has mistaken it for the ball due to his poor eyesight”.
“No real birds were ever used in the making of the TV commercial, it was all created using CGI animation,” SpecSavers added.
The complaint was dismissed by the ASB.